Rama Richards Buchanan
Rama Buchanan
November 23, 2021
Salt Lake City, Utah
—Rama Richards Buchanan passed away peacefully on November 23, 2021 after a lengthy struggle with Lewy Body Dementia. She was born in Ogden, Utah, the third of five children born to Phyllis Krogue Richards and Alton Franklin Richards. Both of her parents were educators and passed their love of teaching down to Rama and many other descendants.
Rama grew up in Ogden and graduated from Ben Lomond High School in 1956. She received an Associate of Science Degree from Weber College in 1958, and then attended Utah State University in Logan, graduating in 1960 with a Bachelor of Science Degree with a major in Business Education, a minor in English and a secondary teaching certificate. She then returned to Ben Lomond High School, where she taught shorthand, typing and English until 1963.
During her third year of teaching at Ben Lomond, as Rama was approaching the ripe old age of 25, her life took an unexpected turn. A handsome Scottish immigrant named Frederick Stewart Buchanan came during Spirit Week to help put on a program with the Salt Lake Scots Bagpipe Band. One of Rama's teaching associates became convinced that Fred was the perfect man for Rama and introduced them. A day later, she and another friend locked Rama in the phone booth until she called him to arrange a date. The rest was history, though oddly enough, Rama was never a huge fan of the bagpipes.
Rama and Fred were married in the Salt Lake Temple on December 27, 1963. Soon after, the young couple moved to Columbus, Ohio where Fred earned his PhD and where their first son was born. Rama typed Fred's entire doctoral dissertation for him but refused to ever read the finished product for fear that she would find she made a goof somewhere. They then moved to Toledo, Ohio, where he had his first teaching position, and where two more sons were born. In 1970 they moved back to Utah, living at first in Bountiful and then moving to Salt Lake City in 1971. Two more sons were born there, after which Rama reluctantly gave up her hope of ever having a daughter. They reared their five sons in that house on Yuma Street and resided there for much of the rest of their lives.
As her sons grew and became more independent, Rama once again gravitated to teaching. She worked for several years as a teacher's aide before receiving a certificate in Elementary Education from the University of Utah. She then worked as a first-grade teacher at Roosevelt Elementary School for seven years, retiring from full-time work in 2003 but returning on a part-time basis for a couple of years because she wanted to continue helping children learn to read.
Rama was fond of music, so long as it wasn't too dissonant. She was a capable pianist and was known to sing silly songs on occasion. She loved listening to her sons and grandchildren play the piano and other instruments. She was at times painfully shy in social situations, preferring to sit on the floor and actively play or read with her grandchildren. She liked eating chocolates and sitting in front of the television with a large bowl of ice cream.
Rama is survived by her sister Lerene Berry, brother Kim, five sons and spouses: Richard (Jenny), Brian (Rachel), Glenn (Renée), Alan (Laura), and Scott (Alicia), eleven granddaughters and six grandsons. She is preceded in death by her loving husband Fred, brothers Don and Rex, and granddaughter Emma.
Family and friends are invited to services to be held on Friday, December 3, 2021, at the Foothill 2nd Ward, 1930 S. 2100 E., Salt Lake City, Utah. Viewing will be held from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., and the memorial service will start at 2:00 p.m. Special thanks to Caralee Jones of Inspiration Hospice, and the wonderful staff at Sunrise Care Center of Sandy. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a contribution to the Granite Education Foundation.
Published by The Salt Lake Tribune from Nov. 30 to Dec. 5, 2021.
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